BBC FUNDING AND THE FUTURE OF WELSH-LANGUAGE BROADCASTER S4C

That this House notes that currently eight per cent of the budget for the Welsh-language channel S4C comes from the licence fee, but that from 2023 the broadcaster will be dependent on the licence fee settlement; further notes that the BBC has an important public service remit, and that S4C plays a very important role in the culture and media landscape in Wales; is therefore seriously concerned about the effect of declining real-terms funding in licence fee revenue, along with the transfer of additional costs to the BBC, which already amounts to a reduction of approximately 20 per cent in resources spent on services to licence fee payers since the start of the decade; believes that given this situation the BBC cannot now afford to pay the £745 million it would cost to maintain free TV licences for the over-75s by 2021/22 without this having a significantly detrimental impact on the range and equality of services; agrees with the National Union of Journalists and the Federation of Entertainment Unions that the BBC should rule out subsiding television licences for the over-75s; and believes that the Government should provide the necessary funding for this concession from general taxation instead.